Lamentations: It worked

Lamentations Background

Written by Jeremiah its a book of 5 poems. Jeremiah personifies Israel as different characters experiencing the punishment of God. There’s the widow, the daughter, the man, the city, the people.

Remember the prophets, what was God trying to do?

Jonah, Hosea, Amos, Micah, Isaiah, Zephaniah, Nahum - what was God trying to get Israel to do?

Hosea 14:1-2 “1 Return, Israel, to the Lord your God. Your sins have been your downfall! 2 Take words with you and return to the Lord. Say to him: “Forgive all our sins and receive us graciously, that we may offer the fruit of our lips.”

Amos 5:14-15 “14 Seek good, not evil, that you may live. Then the Lord God Almighty will be with you, just as you say he is. 15 Hate evil, love good; maintain justice in the courts. Perhaps the Lord God Almighty will have mercy on the remnant of Joseph.”

Micah 6:8 “8 He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.”

At least 30 times throughout these 7 prophets God directly told Israel to acknowledge their sins and turn to Him.

Isreal wouldn’t repent and turn back to Him, so he sent Babylon to bring them into exile… so that they would repent and turn back to Him.

It worked

How does the widow respond to the correction of God?

Lamentations 1:9 “9 Her filthiness clung to her skirts; she did not consider her future. Her fall was astounding; there was none to comfort her. “Look, Lord, on my affliction, for the enemy has triumphed.””

Lamentations 1:11 “11 All her people groan as they search for bread; they barter their treasures for food to keep themselves alive. “Look, Lord, and consider, for I am despised.””

Lamentations 1:14 “14 “My sins have been bound into a yoke; by his hands they were woven together. They have been hung on my neck, and the Lord has sapped my strength. He has given me into the hands of those I cannot withstand.”

Lamentations 1:18 “18 “The Lord is righteous, yet I rebelled against his command. Listen, all you peoples; look on my suffering. My young men and young women have gone into exile.”

Lamentations 1:20 “20 “See, Lord, how distressed I am! I am in torment within, and in my heart I am disturbed, for I have been most rebellious. Outside, the sword bereaves; inside, there is only death.”

How does the daughter respond to the correction of God?

Lamentations 2:10 “10 The elders of Daughter Zion sit on the ground in silence; they have sprinkled dust on their heads and put on sackcloth. The young women of Jerusalem have bowed their heads to the ground.”

Lamentations 2:19 “19 Arise, cry out in the night, as the watches of the night begin; pour out your heart like water in the presence of the Lord. Lift up your hands to him for the lives of your children, who faint from hunger at every street corner.”

How does the man respond to the correction of God?

Lamentations 3:19-26 “19 I remember my affliction and my wandering, the bitterness and the gall. 20 I well remember them, and my soul is downcast within me. 21 Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope: 22 Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. 23 They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. 24 I say to myself, “The Lord is my portion; therefore I will wait for him.” 25 The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him; 26 it is good to wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord.”

Lamentations 3:39-42 “39 Why should the living complain when punished for their sins? 40 Let us examine our ways and test them, and let us return to the Lord. 41 Let us lift up our hearts and our hands to God in heaven, and say: 42 “We have sinned and rebelled and you have not forgiven.”

The city, the people - turn from their sin, acknowledge their failures and seek God for salvation

What are they met with?

Lamentations gives the cliff hanger that sets up the next series of prophets

Lamentations 5:19-22 “19 You, Lord, reign forever; your throne endures from generation to generation. 20 Why do you always forget us? Why do you forsake us so long? 21 Restore us to yourself, Lord, that we may return; renew our days as of old 22 unless you have utterly rejected us and are angry with us beyond measure.”

You want to scream, “what happens!”

Application: We don’t have the wisdom to judge God’s work

I was talking to someone this week about how America’s wealth. One way they judge the wealth of a home is the number of computers it has. That’s stupid. I would have to know why they use that metric before I could judge weather it’s stupid or not. That’s true.

Example: Trying to be God to people

What can I do to make them grow? What can I do to change them? What can I do to convict them?

Why can’t we just let God be God and stay out of His way? These are God’s children, not ours.

Action: Have humility

Lamentations proves that God knows how to get things done. He took Israel, a people who traded their God for worthless idols, sacrificed their children, threw away the Law of God, murdered the prophets, and fought God at every turn and from THAT he created a people who acknowledged their sins and patiently trusted Him for their salvation.